Danielle Bausinger dances the Rose in the 'Waltz of the Flowers' from Cincinnati Ballet's 'Frisch's Presents The Nutcracker.' The ballet runs through Dec. 29 at the Aronoff Center, Downtown.

Written by

David Lyman

Something very intriguing revealed itself as Cincinnati Ballet opened its annual production of "Frisch's Presents The Nutcracker" on Friday evening.

Something even more intriguing, that is, than the production itself, which continues to be an enchanted holiday tale filled with a cornucopia of fantastic images: dancing poodles, a towering cake that sways this way and that, tiny bees that fly into the midst of "Waltz of the Flowers," a giant, undulating dragon and a glorious "Snow Forest" scene filled with sumptuous choreography punctuated by hundreds of tiny explosions of snow. There ...